Republican John McQueeney wins race for Texas House seat in southwest Fort Worth
Republican John McQueeney defeated Democrat Carlos Walker in the race for a Texas House seat that represents southwest Fort Worth and Tarrant County.
McQueeney had 58.6% of early votes to Walker’s 41.4%, according to results posted at about 12:15 a.m. Wednesday. The Associated Press called the race for McQueeney.
McQueeney celebrated his early lead at a party with his predecessor, Texas Rep. Craig Goldman, who opted not to run for re-election and instead to run for U.S. Rep. Kay Granger’s seat in Congress. The two Fort Worth area candidates gathered with Republicans from across the Fort Worth at The Crescent Hotel.
McQueeney, 44, was introduced by state Sen. Kelly Hancock, who called him “the winner” for the House seat.
He outlined a long list of priorities for his first day in Austin, including securing the border between the U.S. and Mexico, supporting families and growing the Texas economy.
McQueeney said he was a supporter of school choice, a legislative priority of Gov. Greg Abbott’s that would allow Texans to use taxpayer dollars to pay for their children to go to private schools. The legislation failed in the Texas House last year after 21 Republicans sided with Democrats to oppose it.
“We’re going to make sure that that bill makes sense, that it works, so that we get that thing across the finish line properly, so that we’ve got we’re giving families and parents the choice that they need,” McQueeney said.
McQueeney has also said he supports expanding access to health care.
“We’ve got to make sure that there’s accessible health care for everybody,” he said.
He said it was too soon for him to say whether he supported expanding Texas’s Medicaid program, which provides health insurance to poor Texas children and for those with disabilities. Texas is one of 10 states that has not broadened its Medicaid program to include adults with low incomes.
Walker did not immediately respond to a request for comment from the Star-Telegram. Walker is the director of the Fort Worth school district’s Family Action Center.
In addition to parts of Fort Worth, House District 97 also includes Benbrook, White Settlement and most of Crowley.
McQueeney owns a trucking company and several fast food franchises, he said. He defeated Republican Cheryl Bean in competitive runoff earlier this year. McQueeney nabbed the nomination despite Bean’s support from Republican leaders including Attorney General Ken Paxton and Tarrant County Judge Tim O’Hare.
McQueeney will be an anomaly in Tarrant County’s delegation in Austin as a fresh face. Most of the state House and Senate seats are likely to be won by incumbent officials seeking re-election. In four of the races for Tarrant County’s Texas House seats, incumbents faced no opponents.
For six of the races, incumbent candidates were of their challengers in early vote totals. Among these incumbents is Texas Rep. David Cook, a Mansfield Republican, who previously announced that he planned to run for House Speaker if re-elected. The Texas House won’t elect a speaker until January.
This story was originally published November 5, 2024 at 7:10 PM.
